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Validating mental health assessment in Kenya using an innovative gold standard.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Watson, LK; Kaiser, BN; Giusto, AM; Ayuku, D; Puffer, ES
Published in: International journal of psychology : Journal international de psychologie
June 2020

With the growing burden of mental health disorders worldwide, alongside efforts to expand availability of evidence-based interventions, strategies are needed to ensure accurate identification of individuals suffering from mental disorders. Efforts to locally validate mental health assessments are of particular value, yet gold-standard clinical validation is costly, time-intensive, and reliant on available professionals. This study aimed to validate assessment items for mental distress in Kenya, using an innovative gold standard and a combination of culturally adapted and locally developed items. The mixed-method study drew on surveys and semi-structured interviews, conducted by lay interviewers, with 48 caregivers. Interviews were used to designate mental health "cases" or "non-cases" based on emotional health problems, identified through a collaborative clinical rating process with local input. Individual mental health survey items were evaluated for their ability to discriminate between cases and non-cases. Discriminant survey items included 23 items adapted from existing mental health assessment tools, as well as 6 new items developed for the specific cultural context. When items were combined into a scale, results showed good psychometric properties. The use of clinically rated semi-structured interviews provides a promising alternative gold standard that can help address the challenges of conducting diagnostic clinical validation in low-resource settings.

Duke Scholars

Published In

International journal of psychology : Journal international de psychologie

DOI

EISSN

1464-066X

ISSN

0020-7594

Publication Date

June 2020

Volume

55

Issue

3

Start / End Page

425 / 434

Related Subject Headings

  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Social Psychology
  • Psychometrics
  • Middle Aged
  • Mental Health
  • Male
  • Kenya
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Adult
 

Citation

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Watson, L. K., Kaiser, B. N., Giusto, A. M., Ayuku, D., & Puffer, E. S. (2020). Validating mental health assessment in Kenya using an innovative gold standard. International Journal of Psychology : Journal International de Psychologie, 55(3), 425–434. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijop.12604
Watson, Leah K., Bonnie N. Kaiser, Ali M. Giusto, David Ayuku, and Eve S. Puffer. “Validating mental health assessment in Kenya using an innovative gold standard.International Journal of Psychology : Journal International de Psychologie 55, no. 3 (June 2020): 425–34. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijop.12604.
Watson LK, Kaiser BN, Giusto AM, Ayuku D, Puffer ES. Validating mental health assessment in Kenya using an innovative gold standard. International journal of psychology : Journal international de psychologie. 2020 Jun;55(3):425–34.
Watson, Leah K., et al. “Validating mental health assessment in Kenya using an innovative gold standard.International Journal of Psychology : Journal International de Psychologie, vol. 55, no. 3, June 2020, pp. 425–34. Epmc, doi:10.1002/ijop.12604.
Watson LK, Kaiser BN, Giusto AM, Ayuku D, Puffer ES. Validating mental health assessment in Kenya using an innovative gold standard. International journal of psychology : Journal international de psychologie. 2020 Jun;55(3):425–434.

Published In

International journal of psychology : Journal international de psychologie

DOI

EISSN

1464-066X

ISSN

0020-7594

Publication Date

June 2020

Volume

55

Issue

3

Start / End Page

425 / 434

Related Subject Headings

  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Social Psychology
  • Psychometrics
  • Middle Aged
  • Mental Health
  • Male
  • Kenya
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Adult